How Can I Avoid Stress Eating?

Rabia Mirxa
3 min readJul 20, 2022

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At the point when you’re anxious, eating can seem like simply what to control your feelings whether you’re feeling lonely, bored, stressed out, or even anxious. The issue is, that stress eating is difficult to stop. It is referred to as food that gives us the same amount of pleasure and satisfaction that even drugs will.

Stress releases the chemical cortisol and adrenaline that connect with insulin and appetite hormones, which can urge you to eat high-sugary food and fatty foods. Plus, calorie-dense foods can activate the brain’s reward system, which means the brain learns that unhealthy foods can actually reduce negative emotions for a shorter period of time.

It really improves our mood and feels better for the time being. This is not a solution to crush the stress, not the hunger, with food. Here are some simple tips to overcome stress eating when you are facing stress in your life.

Swap Out Worst Snacks

If you don’t have a big bag of oily chips at your access, Congratulations you are saved! because eating a lot of processed snacks can increase your hormone’s stress level.

If you are craving a salty snack, stock popcorn at your place. They are rich in whole grains that are one major source of the good hormone serotonin. With this, you also get antioxidants to boost your immune system and much fewer calories than chips. Another crunch option is to have roasted chickpeas with protein and fiber to fill you up.

Stress, sadness, or anger trigger your sweet tooth, remember: Sweet food gives pleasure, but after eating it, one leads to more cravings. Sweets and processed foods cause specific mental concerns, such as symptoms of depression, or worse.

Get an alternative to your favorite cakes, candy, or pies, keep a bowl of sweet fruit or frozen berries on hand that can quickly be tossed into a blender to make a healthy smoothie.

Choose Foods That Reduce Stress

Many negative emotions including anger, sadness, and stress can trigger bad eating habits.

Drinks

Have you ever think why people offer hot tea in emotional situations? It is not just soothing steam but more than that. Tea contains helpful antioxidants. Likewise, green tea, white tea, and matcha tea contain an amino acid known as L-theanine that may help to bring down stress levels. You can also get the benefits of apple cider vinegar as it has potassium which boosts our energy level and reduces the symptoms of anxiety.

Eatables

Do you feel difficult falling asleep at night? Try dark chocolates and dark cherries they are not only a sweet treat, but they also help raise natural levels of melatonin that help you sleep.

Similarly, salmon and other fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids may help with sleep.

Nuts, whole grains, legumes, vegetables, and fruits all play their part to maintain a healthy mind. Always stock up on foods that help with your stress or emotions, and avoid processed junk that might make you feel worse.

Stress Distractions Activities

Physical activities reduce stress. If you are feeling stressed out you can go to the gym, as exercise boosts the production of your brain’s good neurotransmitters, called endorphins. In case you find it hard to exercise you can involve yourself in many other physical activities at home to distract your mind. You can increase the amount of walking, laps in the pool, gardening, cleaning, and other lighter forms of movement. There is another option of playing physical games with your friends such as tennis or racquetball. With this, you can not just farewell the stress but enhance your self-confidence, improve your mood, and give you a sense of command over your body and your life.

Wind-Up

Stress eating is a common experience and is not generally connected with physical hunger. Some people surrender to it occasionally while others can find it to influence their lives and may even compromise their health and mental wellbeing. Include physical activities in your daily life, it will stop your overthinking and allow you to lead a better life.

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